EC with sapphires. E-ring custom design help

[TimUaD]

I was hoping to get some help with an EC e-ring. We want to integrate sapphires somehow (both of our birthstones and she loves them). We saw a white house brothers setting she liked that had pashire baggetts, but didn’t care for the round diamond also included (pic attached).

I am thinking of having the jeweler create something himself. I would like the tapered Baggett sapphires, or maybe smaller emerald cut sapphires kind of "hidden" up under the main EC diamond. I am looking for around a 1.2ct EC center stone. Do you think princess cut side stone would look funny?

I would love to see any other pics you may have, or get advice on how to describe the ring she will love to the jeweler for fabrication.

Another thing is she likes the "wheat"(?)... kind of old-timey engraving look, but dosent want the big basket thing under the stone like many whithouse brothers... another consideration is price... I don’t want to add a $3000 setting to a $6000 stone (trying to stay <7k), and may have to go with a solitare to get the sixe center stone I want

.

Thanks in advance (pics of examples I have found to follow, If they will post)

 

[TimUaD]

aahaa... picture worked.

Here is another I kind of like.

 

[TimUaD]

another... this one''s tapered baggetts look a little wierd... but I think I like it.

 

[TimUaD]

I also like the EC cut side sappires... I think. I like the way these are kind of tucked under making the center stone the centerpiece of the ring.

 

[TimUaD]

the jeweler said princess cut woule look funny wiht an EC center stone... what do you think?

 

[TimUaD]

Last one... I also thought about somehting like this with saphires for the baggetts.

I still dont know how to integrate the old fashon engraving theme she likes on the first pic (whitehouse bros)... Cna I just aske the jeweler to make some pretty wavey lines or something?

Thanks

 

[neatfreak]

Hi Tim,

Is there a reason you are tied into buying from Whitehouse for the stone? I think you could do better on price elsewhere.

My vote hands down is for the last setting. That is one of my all time favorites. Classic. You could easily substitute sapphires for the sides and a GOOD custom benchman could engrave the rest of the band.

 

[TimUaD]

Date: 10/22/2008 9:41:28 AM
Author: neatfreak
Hi Tim,

Is there a reason you are tied into buying from Whitehouse for the stone?

Wow neat, you must be on this site constantly (I think youre the first to respond to all my posts)... thanks for the reply.

I meant to say whitehouse for the setting (pirst pic)... and no... there is not a particular reason we were looking at them, thats just the book he had laying around the store. Actually they do seem to jack the price up, and I

I kind of like the last one too. I like the way the side stones look. He says that he can do ANYTHING I want in house... so maybe he can do the engraving too.

 

[bgray]

the wheat is more victorian but the EC and sapphires (squares) is more deco.........in my opinion they dont really go together. i think the Ec would look lovely with french cut sapphires set into the shank or as a bezel

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 10/22/2008 9:59:11 AM
Author: TimUaD

Date: 10/22/2008 9:41:28 AM

Author: neatfreak

Hi Tim,


Is there a reason you are tied into buying from Whitehouse for the stone?

Wow neat, you must be on this site constantly (I think youre the first to respond to all my posts)... thanks for the reply.


I meant to say whitehouse for the setting (pirst pic)... and no... there is not a particular reason we were looking at them, thats just the book he had laying around the store. Actually they do seem to jack the price up, and I


I kind of like the last one too. I like the way the side stones look. He says that he can do ANYTHING I want in house... so maybe he can do the engraving too.

Right now I am. Pregnant with twins and on bedrest! More amusing than daytime television for sure.


The last one is just so classy and classic. I''d do that one!

 

[CDNinNYC]

My favourite setting is also the last one you posted. I did want to offer an alternative idea in case you hadn''t thought of it. Another way to incorporate your love of sapphires might be to consider a surprise stone in sapphire instead of having two sapphires flanking the centre stone. I''m going to see if I can track down an example.

 

[CDNinNYC]

Ok, here's Pauly1's engagement ring with a surprise blue sapphire and engraving. (Hope you don't mind Pauly1!)

ETA: more photos can be found here.

 

[CDNinNYC]

Here''s a Leon Mege ring with the surprise sapphire underneath the centre stone. (I''m not saying this particular setting would work with your EC centre stone but I wanted to show you a different spot you can put the surprise sapphire.)

 

[CDNinNYC]

Here''s a profile of CustomCushion''s surprise diamond.

 

[TimUaD]

Date: 10/22/2008 10:30:55 AM
Author: bgray
the wheat is more victorian but the EC and sapphires (squares) is more deco.........in my opinion they dont really go together. i think the Ec would look lovely with french cut sapphires set into the shank or as a bezel

Huh... I hadent thought about the wheat not going well with the EC... anybody else lean toward a no-no on the engraving?

by french cut do you mean the little square ones like below? I thought somehing like this with every other one sapphire then diomond would be nice, but she didnt care for the one like that that we saw. I think she prefers a plain or engraved band with no inserts.

Thanks.

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 10/22/2008 11:29:30 AM
Author: TimUaD

Date: 10/22/2008 10:30:55 AM

Author: bgray

the wheat is more victorian but the EC and sapphires (squares) is more deco.........in my opinion they dont really go together. i think the Ec would look lovely with french cut sapphires set into the shank or as a bezel

Huh... I hadent thought about the wheat not going well with the EC... anybody else lean toward a no-no on the engraving?


by french cut do you mean the little square ones like below? I thought somehing like this with every other one sapphire then diomond would be nice, but she didnt care for the one like that that we saw. I think she prefers a plain or engraved band with no inserts.


Thanks.

I think it goes together fine even if the eras are different. But I prefer a sleeker look so if I were buying for myself I would prefer it without.

What that picture looks like to me is princess cuts...french cuts are an older style and much less busy...

I have a sapphire ring like it actually, the opposite of what you are looking for (sapp center, diamond sides) but it's beautiful IMO without the engraving...but if you know the engraving is important to her, GET IT.

 

[TimUaD]

neat - congrats on the pregnancy... now I see why you are always around.

CDNinNYC - I hadn''t thought about the surprise stone idea... thanks for the thoughts. While, that is cool, I am still leaning a little toward the side sapphires though... I doubt both would be doable?

Generic question: approx hom much do you think a jeweler should charge to create a setting similar to the last picture I posted (the one everybody likes). I know you cant get it exact... but a ballpark would help.

A little derail of the topic here, but is upgrade to platinum worth it? the jeweler I have in mind is really pushing it.

BTW: just for fun... while I was talking to the jeweler about all the specs of the stone, and giving him a little bit of a hard time about online prices being less (if you caught my last thread). He correctly guessed my profession (engineer), and with the concurrence of his wife/business partner, identified us as a royal pain and very hard to sell a diamond to... they say we get too caught up in the numbers/facts... anyway, I got a chuckle out of that.

thanks

 

[TimUaD]

Here is another setting that looks similar to the one I am leaning toward.

https://www.jamesallen.com/shop_bag.asp?cid=58

It sells with Platnum and diamond baggettes on James Allen for $1400. Do you think a jeweler should be able to create a similar one with sapphires for about the same price? I think then, I could rationalize buying the stone from him (even though he is charging a little more), because I am still staying within (barely) my 7k budget.

Thanks.

 

[TimUaD]

OK, how about this one? These side stones are pretty cool with the trapaziodal shapes. do you think this would look nice with the sides being sapphires? how about the baggettes? loose them? leave diomonds? make sapphires? or do you still like the just baggette look?

Thanks

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 10/23/2008 11:02:06 AM
Author: TimUaD
OK, how about this one? These side stones are pretty cool with the trapaziodal shapes. do you think this would look nice with the sides being sapphires? how about the baggettes? loose them? leave diomonds? make sapphires? or do you still like the just baggette look?


Thanks

If I am being honest this one looks a lot cheaper and more generic than the more classic one...

And as to your price question, $1400 is reasonable, but at the same time there are companies that literally sell those settings by the thousands, usually without diamonds mounted in (my sapphire setting is from one of these generic companies with a few modifications), so in my estimation it shouldn't have to be custom made...just insert sapphires instead of diamonds...

And I personally do like platinum better, but everyone has their own opinion. Just run a search about platinum vs. gold or something in the search box and you will find HOURS of reading!

 

[neatfreak]

This one isn't the best example, but it comes without the stones, so the jeweler should just be able to order sapphire baguettes, insert, and you are good to go. I am sure it comes in white metals too.

Mine is from Unique Settings of New York which is the same type of company. Any jeweler can get you stuller settings and they aren't too expensive. They can then modify as necessary, which is often a lot cheaper than going custom.

http://www.stuller.com/products/product.aspx?s=120691

Do you have a setting budget again? I forgot...

 

[TimUaD]

Date: 10/23/2008 11:13:09 AM
Author: neatfreak
Do you have a setting budget again? I forgot...

Thanks for the info. My total budget is 7k, so If I go with the stone the jeweler is pushing (his) that leaves me with $1400 for the setting.

I am drafting an email with examples of less expensive, compariable quality stones online, and will be sending that to him soon... but from talking to him, i dont think he will drop that price.

I am beinning to feel like going to the jeweler at all may have been a mistake (since like you said... I am looking at a setting that can easily be purchased online... why pay for him to re-invent the wheel?), but he has done so much to help me, with ordering settings, and stones, and working with us to find what we want, I really dont want to just bail out on him now.

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 10/23/2008 11:24:39 AM
Author: TimUaD

Date: 10/23/2008 11:13:09 AM

Author: neatfreak

Do you have a setting budget again? I forgot...

Thanks for the info. My total budget is 7k, so If I go with the stone the jeweler is pushing (his) that leaves me with $1400 for the setting.


I am drafting an email with examples of less expensive, compariable quality stones online, and will be sending that to him soon... but from talking to him, i dont think he will drop that price.


I am beinning to feel like going to the jeweler at all may have been a mistake (since like you said... I am looking at a setting that can easily be purchased online... why pay for him to re-invent the wheel?), but he has done so much to help me, with ordering settings, and stones, and working with us to find what we want, I really dont want to just bail out on him now.

I can totally understand that...but it's just like making any purchase. If a vendor can't give you what you want (whether it's service, price, an item, etc.) you go to another vendor. I think this is such an emotionally charged purchase that it's hard to put into that perspective, but thats how you need to look at it. Would you pay a lot more for a car from one dealer just because he called it in for you? Probably not...

I have a local jeweler whom I go to for lots of things. My sapphire ring (not the sapphire), a few bezel necklaces, etc. But they just could not provide what I needed for my engagement ring and so we bought from Engagement Rings Direct (Mark is a DOLL by the way and has a great eye for fancy cuts if you change your mind about buying online). And you know what? My local jeweler was kind, and totally understood. He just couldn't do it that time. But I still bring business in to him and he is just as kind as when we were looking at engagement rings. THAT is the kind of service I expect, not to be told I am too picky ya know? That's just degrading from someone who is theoretically trying to earn my business...

 

[TimUaD]

Thanks Neat... we will see how he does on his setting prices

This is a little off topic, but I thought I would post the email that I plan to send him, and make sure you guys thought I wasaent being too much off an @$$. I want to be nice about hte whole thing, and would like to have him design Sarah''s ring, but I dont want to pay an extra $1k than I have to. Note: a few of the pictures above will be atached to the email as well as a couple comparable stones priced 4200-4600 vice his 5600 1.18ct EC.



Mr. XXXXXX,

I have been doing a little more research, and wanted to get back in touch with you like I promised. I have found a couple of examples that I would like to get more information on having similar models fabricated, or purchased and set, etc.

Example 1: I think this is my least favorite, but it has potential. I like how the sapphires are much smaller and kind of tucked under, making the center stone the centerpiece.

Example 2: This is another one that may have two potential variants. I thought I would get your advice on which stones to make sapphires (trapezoids, baguettes, or both). Another variant might be to loose the baguettes, and make the trapezoids sapphires.

Example 3: Example 3a (attached), and link 1 (below) are very similar, and the style that I am currently leaning toward, with the exception of making the baguettes into sapphires. This seems to be a really classic look, and I think will incorporate what we want.

LINK 1: http://www.jamesallen.com/engagement-rings/settings-with-sidestones/ring/item_58-869_design.asp?module=setting

Hopefully this will give you a better idea of what I had in mind. Although I appreciate you getting those Whitehouse setting for us, I think the examples above are better options.

Now for the financial aspects. We have been looking at houses, and met with a mortgage broker yesterday, who has helped to reveal how my finances need to be. I feel that I need to keep this purchase down to below $7k for everything involved, to accomplish all that Sarah and I want in the next year or so. I would like to know if this is reasonable with the 1.18ct stone we spoke about Friday, and a setting ordered/fabricated similar to the ones mentioned above?

Additionally, you said you would give an honest expert opinion if I was able to find any stones online that could help to reduce the cost to meet our budget. I would like to take you up on that offer. After an online search, I have compiled a list (see attached Word document) of four stones of comparable quality that are priced $1450 - $1000 less than your stone.

Even with the increase in setting price that we spoke about, if one of these stones, or a similar one could help us meet our budgetary goal, I ask that you consider it. I am willing to do the leg work ordering the stone, and considering that you have already reduced the price of your stone for me (thanks), your total compensation may even be greater if this route is taken. I might add that these online vendors seem to have very good reputations, return/upgrade/non-drop shipment policies, etc, that we discussed ad being potential downfalls to online shopping.



Thanks

 

[neatfreak]

I don''t think you are being a jerk at all. But at the same time, you are giving him a lot of leeway to still push you into what he wants, so just beware. And I''m not sure if he''ll give you an unbiased honest opinion since he''s already told you things that implied that he thought you were being too picky...but I''ll leave that to you to sort out!

And I don''t think you need to justify your budget. Just say my budget is $7k. Period. And he needs to help you work within that.

And just as another aside, have you seen a lot of emerald cuts? They are hard to buy without seeing a lot of them because there is a big difference between a nice one and an ugly one and you can''t always be sure what''s nice and what''s ugly until you have seen a number of them.

You''ll be fine don''t worry!!!

 

[asscherisme]

Tacori has an amazing ring with an emerald center and sapphire in the setting. I love diamonds and sapphires together.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Have you seen my e-ring? Also Kirk Kara has a beautiful setting with blue sapphires.

 

[TimUaD]

Date: 10/23/2008 1:20:44 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
Have you seen my e-ring? Also Kirk Kara has a beautiful setting with blue sapphires.

no, I havent... where can I find pictures? Thanks

 

[Tacori E-ring]

My girl is a little shy (or more likely I am really bad at taking bling pics) so she is much prettier in real life. You can find some pictures here. but if you do a search of my topics I have had a few threads with pictures. Good luck.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I think you are looking at the wrong kind of settings if she wants engraving. I would try to find a setting already made. Tacori has a gorgeous Tacori setting, but that is going to run a good bit higher than your price range.

This site has some sapphire/diamond engraved settings as well as a section (your couture) where you can design a setting. You''d have to check and see who sells their line. You''d be looking at white gold and not platinum, for sure, but you may still have difficulty getting a quality setting at the price you are hoping for.

http://www.timelessdesigns.com/jewelry.htm